Rail line repair in Wharton, N.J., Roxbury, N.J., may be done in 4 months

The rehabilitation of the Chester Branch Railroad, a four-mile rail line extending from Wharton, N.J., and ending in Roxbury, N.J., is under way and should be completed within four to five months, county officials said, according to the Daily Record. The county Board of Freeholders in April awarded a $5.1-million contract to the firm Railroad Construction Co. Inc., of Paterson to rehabilitate the rail line, with the money coming from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, part of the economic stimulus package.

The four-mile active
freight line now serves Roxbury commercial users, but with the rehabilitation,
it has the potential to also serve customers in Randolph, in particular the
former Westinghouse site, now the BETA Corporate Park, said Freeholder Director
Gene Feyl.

"The rehabilitation
of the Chester Branch meets the intent of the federal stimulus 
legislation by
creating employment opportunities not only during rehabilitation but by the
future economic opportunities it will create in Morris County,” Feyl said.
"Since one rail car is approximately equivalent to four tractor trailers,
the efficient use of this rail line also has the potential to reduce truck traffic along major roadways in the county.”

The work so far: Brush
cutting in the work area has been completed; the railroad crossing sight
distances have been increased to meet Federal Railroad Administration
standards; new track is being installed on a daily basis; and railroad crossing
replacements at Main Street, First Street and Berkshire Valley Road are being
scheduled.

The freight line was
donated to the county by Chester Branch, LLC, in October 2009, and the
Morristown & Erie Railway has a
management agreement with the county to continue to operate on the Chester
Branch. The M&E also operates the two other county-owned rail lines: the
High Bridge Branch and the Dover & Rockaway Railroad.

The Chester Branch
connects to the High Bridge Branch, and these two lines connect to the NJ Transit
line near the Roxbury-Rockaway Township border, enabling freight service to
connect throughout New Jersey and nationwide.